Ever thinking of where to really get the authentic Thai food and yet it's royal cuisine, here is an unrivaled one for you: ThanYing. So why I said this is a royal cuisine one. It's because recipes used in this restaurant resembled that ones once used by Princess Sulabh-Valleng Visuddhi who was the head cook in the kitchen of Sukhothai Palace. Thus, now ThanYing is run by the son of the princess, M.R. Sorut Visuddhi.

I kind of remember that this restaurant has been operated since I was a kid. Somewhat 20 years or so ago. It is located in Soi Pramuan which connect Thanon Silom to Thanon Sathon. If you do drive, it is pretty easy to reach this place and there are plenty of parking lots. However, reaching via public transport is still not a big hassle. The nearest BTS station is Surasak Station. Once walk pass the front door of this restaurant, you would feel it right there: the classic contemporary decor with elegant atmosphere. Yes, elegant atmosphere I would say. Most of the time, this place can have low level of noise. It is perhaps mandatory for most of guests to speak softly but naturally and automatically in this place.

ThanYing Restaurant @ Silom, Bangkok

beautiful dining hall

more relax corner

One of the plus plus thing for ThanYing is it serves Khao Chae all year round which is a rare case for any other restaurants. Trust me, it is one of the best in town. For today, there is a special menu which we did not hesitate to try: steamed rice cooked with coconut milk, papaya salad, salted egg, shredded pork, tamarind dip and chicken curry - ข้าวมันส้มตำ (Khao Mun Som Tum) น้ำพริกมะขาม ไข่เค็ม หมูฝอย แกงไก่ (8/10). Ever since I was a young boy, khao mun som tum has been one of my all time favourite Thai food. It is such a good combination of delicate steamed rice cooked with coconut milk, which yields flavourful and textured rice, and rich taste som tum of Nort-eastern dish. Another starter that I hardly miss for any Thai meal would be yam ma khuer yaao - ยำมะเขือยาว (7/10). This is a perfect dish to start off your meal. Tangy and mild spiciness. Soft aubergine with charcoal aroma. Love it.

Next was pla ga-phong sarm ros - ปลากะพงสามรส (8/10). This is another of my favourite here. It is not too spicy but rich in flavour and yet it is crisp. Good thing is the dish would be cut into pieces for you to easily eat. Delicate in detail indeed. For curry range, I would usually recommend Gaeng Nuer (beef curry, similar to green curry) at this place. Nevertheless, it was gang massaman nuer - แกงมัสมั่นเนื้อ (7/10) for this time. It is less in spiciness. But richer in texture, more nutty, and comes with unique taste of caraway. For those who may want to have mild dish gai pad ta krai - ไก่ผัดตะไคร้ (7/10) is not a bad choice at all. So rich in lemongrass aroma.

For us, every single time we dine at ThanYing, it is just memorable. Forget those super famous in modern day like BoLan or any other fusion / half-blood Thai food. Here is the real one, I promise.